Voren cleared his throat when his gaze finally settled on Ravyn, and the faint apology visible in his expression softened the tension on his face just enough to show that he was aware of the betrayal Ravyn might feel in that mont, even though he had already decided that business would co before friendship.
He inclined his head toward Seraphine before speaking, his voice calm but carrying across the quiet room with unmistakable clarity. "Fifty billion."
The number landed heavily in the air, and the silence that followed carried the stunned reaction of everyone present, because even inside a club filled with billionaires, casually announcing an investnt of that size still had the power to shock the room.
Ravyn’s face twisted in disbelief as he stared at Voren, looking as though the ground beneath his feet had just collapsed. The betrayal in his eyes was painfully obvious as he forced the words out. "Voren... you?"
Voren t his gaze with careful composure, and although there was a trace of sympathy in his eyes, the firm tone of his voice made it clear that sympathy would not change the decision he had already made.
"Ravyn, this is business," Voren said, choosing each word carefully while maintaining steady eye contact. "And I have my conditions too."
The mont the word conditions entered the conversation, Ravyn’s tense expression relaxed slightly, because he imdiately understood that Voren was not blindly throwing money at Seraphine without securing his own advantage.
Seraphine tilted her head with quiet interest, her eyes resting on Voren with the calm attentiveness of soone evaluating a chess move several steps ahead.
"What, Mr. Ashkael, are your conditions?" she asked smoothly.
Voren’s glare hardened as he looked at her, not because he disliked her but because he recognized exactly what she was capable of becoming in the world of finance, and the businessman inside him refused to walk away from an opportunity that promising.
"I want forty percent returns in twelve months."
The room reacted instantly.
Eyebrows lifted across the lounge and murmurs began rippling through the gathered investors, because even in aggressive markets that kind of return was extrely ambitious, and hearing it demanded so bluntly made several n exchange skeptical looks.
Seraphine pressed her lips together thoughtfully as though weighing the numbers inside her mind with careful calculation.
"In that case," she replied calmly, "double the amount."
Ravyn’s fists tightened so hard that the tendons in his hands stood out sharply beneath his skin.
The amount Seraphine had already secured during the evening was large enough to push her na into the Forbes rankings, yet promising Voren forty percent returns from one hundred billion within a single year raised the stakes to a level that made Ravyn’s chest tighten painfully.
He wanted that money more than anything.
He also understood exactly what the consequences would be if he spoke up against it.
"Deal," Voren said without hesitation as he stepped forward toward the holographic interface displaying the contract.
He raised his hand to scan the docunt, but Seraphine stopped him with a small apologetic smile.
"I’m sorry," she said lightly. "My battery died earlier, so I’ll send you a revised contract when I get back."
Voren nodded thoughtfully, already considering the implications. "In that case," he said, "I’ll make a deposit as a show of commitnt so you don’t change your mind."
His concern that she might reconsider the arrangent had the opposite effect on the rest of the room.
The billionaires gathered around them instantly grew more interested. Gordon leaned forward with curiosity shining in his eyes as he addressed her.
"Does the sa rule apply to the rest of us?"
Seraphine’s smile returned, calm and confident. "If you can give one hundred billion," she replied, "then sure."
Gordon laughed softly, shaking his head at the absurdity of the proposal.
"If I hand you one hundred billion, I would have to temporarily shut down my company or take out a massive loan just to keep operations running," he said with an amused but cautious expression. "Can I trust you?"
Seraphine released a quiet sigh, and the sincerity in her voice softened the atmosphere.
"If you give that kind of money, don’t take a loan," she said gently. "Try to manage with whatever resources you still have for three months, and I will send your returns in installnts so your company stays afloat."
The warmth in her response surprised several of the n.
"Oh," soone murmured. Mark studied her with a faint smile forming on his lips.
"She looks fierce on the outside," he said thoughtfully, "but inside she’s actually quite kind."
Seraphine bowed politely in acknowledgnt.
"I’ll spend an hour having drinks with everyone and answering private questions."
Before anyone else could respond, Leon stepped forward and guided her away from the center of the gathering.
Seraphine could feel dozens of gazes pressing against her back while they walked, and the weight of that attention made her shoulders tense with discomfort.
She appreciated Leon’s presence beside her, because his quiet protectiveness made the situation easier to handle, yet she also understood that he had business to conduct inside this room just like everyone else.
"You should go make contacts too," she told him softly. "I’ll be fine."
Across the room, Jas had been watching them closely, and Seraphine imdiately understood that he had been waiting for the chance to pull Leon into one of the private conversations happening among the more powerful n.
Leon hesitated, studying her with visible concern. "Are you sure?" he asked seriously. "I still don’t trust them."
Seraphine knew he was not wrong. Still, she could not justify dragging him away from the opportunities he had co here for.
"Trust ," she said gently. "I’ll be fine, and we should leave in about an hour anyway."
Leon nodded slowly before leaning down to kiss the top of her head with quiet affection.
"Your phone died, so stay right here until I co back," he said. "I won’t be long."
He walked toward his father and stepmother, and the three of them soon disappeared into one of the private rooms reserved for more confidential discussions while several other n began approaching Seraphine with curious smiles and raised glasses.
Leon clearly disliked the sight of it.
Jas noticed his discomfort and placed a reassuring hand on his shoulder. "Relax," Jas said calmly. "Mr. Ashkael is reasonable enough, and as chairman he’s responsible for maintaining order."
Leon accepted the explanation with a reluctant nod, although the uneasiness in his chest never completely disappeared.
Nearly an hour passed while they discussed business inside the private room, and eventually Leon excused himself briefly so he could check on Seraphine.
When he stepped back into the lounge, the first thing he noticed was the group of n who had previously surrounded her.
Their faces were pale, and Seraphine was nowhere in sight. The only thing left behind was a single piece of her earring resting on the floor.
Leon rushed forward and picked it up, his pulse racing as a heavy sense of dread filled his chest.
Seraphine was not careless, so sothing had happened. He looked up at the n with sharp urgency.
"Where is Sera?"
None of them answered. Their faces remained white as ghosts, fear tightened around Leon’s chest like a crushing weight.
"Where is she?" he demanded loudly.
The n exchanged uneasy glances before slowly raising their hands and pointing toward one of the exits.
Leon ran in that direction without another word.
At the end of the hallway he found a closed door, about to knock on it when it pushed opened.
The man standing there had lipstick on his lips, and a dazed expression on his face.
Leon stared at him in stunned disbelief before the question forced its way out. "Mr. Ashkael... did you take Sera?"
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